Mentone Town Council Fields Complaints About Trailer Park

December 6, 2019 at 12:53 a.m.

By Jackie [email protected]

MENTONE ­– The Mentone Town Council heard concerns about a local mobile home park during its meeting Wednesday.

The park in question, Kline Trailer Court, is a 13-lot park owned by Bob Kline of Fort Wayne. Former park resident Jeff McCoy, who currently lives in Rochester, said Kline lives in Warsaw.

McCoy addressed the council during its meeting, talking about the conditions of the trailer park. He had lived in the park from October to mid-November on lot 10.

He said his main concern was the cleanliness of the community.

McCoy said he and his fiancee woke up one day with bug bites.

His second concern was that of the trailer itself. McCoy said there were extension cords in the residence and he had no idea what they hooked up to.

“The bathroom floor was caved in by the tub,” he said.

Another person who currently lives in the park wrote a letter to council member Tim Croy voicing complaints of her own. The letter was forwarded to Town Attorney Andrew Grossnickle.

The woman stated she lost electricity in some rooms her trailer. When Kline sent an electrician, the electrician was unable to fix the problem at the fuse box. The letter said the electrician then started banging on the outside of the trailer, which got the electricity to go back on.

“I’m sure there’s a rodent problem,” Croy said. McCoy said there definitely is one.

“I think those trailers have been bad for a while,” said council member Shelly Krueger.

Croy said he had talked to Kline about the trailer park and said Kline told him to take everything he was told with a grain of salt because Kline claimed a lot of people in the park owed him money. Kline did not attend Wednesday’s meeting.

Croy said he and Grossnickle are looking into seeking health and building inspectors to investigate the court. Croy said he is unable to conduct the building inspections since he serves on the town council.

Also Wednesday, the council:

• Heard from Rich Haddad, president and CEO of K21 Health Foundation.  Haddad said the foundation is offering each of the nine incorporated towns of the county and offering them up to $200,000 for health and wellness initiatives for the town.

Any plan for the money does not have to come from the town council, but it has to be approved by the council, Haddad said. It also does not have to be one project, but can be several projects adding up to the $200,000.

There is no deadline requirements, but Haddad said if he hadn’t heard anything from the town by the second half of next year, he’ll give the council a call.

The requirements that are associated with the money includes anything the money is spent on has to coincide with the K21 mission and has to be approved by the town council.

Council President Jill Gross suggested some sort of newsletter to let all the towns know what other towns are thinking of or working on.

• Heard from Town Utilities Supervisor Josh Shepherd that loose-leaf pickup will end today. Any further leaf pickups will have to be in bags.

The council also approved a motion to remind residents not to leave furniture for pickup. Residents have to call Valley Sanitation at 574-893-7070 for an extra fee. Leaving furniture out for regular trash collection without calling the sanitation department will lead to warnings and possibly fines.

MENTONE ­– The Mentone Town Council heard concerns about a local mobile home park during its meeting Wednesday.

The park in question, Kline Trailer Court, is a 13-lot park owned by Bob Kline of Fort Wayne. Former park resident Jeff McCoy, who currently lives in Rochester, said Kline lives in Warsaw.

McCoy addressed the council during its meeting, talking about the conditions of the trailer park. He had lived in the park from October to mid-November on lot 10.

He said his main concern was the cleanliness of the community.

McCoy said he and his fiancee woke up one day with bug bites.

His second concern was that of the trailer itself. McCoy said there were extension cords in the residence and he had no idea what they hooked up to.

“The bathroom floor was caved in by the tub,” he said.

Another person who currently lives in the park wrote a letter to council member Tim Croy voicing complaints of her own. The letter was forwarded to Town Attorney Andrew Grossnickle.

The woman stated she lost electricity in some rooms her trailer. When Kline sent an electrician, the electrician was unable to fix the problem at the fuse box. The letter said the electrician then started banging on the outside of the trailer, which got the electricity to go back on.

“I’m sure there’s a rodent problem,” Croy said. McCoy said there definitely is one.

“I think those trailers have been bad for a while,” said council member Shelly Krueger.

Croy said he had talked to Kline about the trailer park and said Kline told him to take everything he was told with a grain of salt because Kline claimed a lot of people in the park owed him money. Kline did not attend Wednesday’s meeting.

Croy said he and Grossnickle are looking into seeking health and building inspectors to investigate the court. Croy said he is unable to conduct the building inspections since he serves on the town council.

Also Wednesday, the council:

• Heard from Rich Haddad, president and CEO of K21 Health Foundation.  Haddad said the foundation is offering each of the nine incorporated towns of the county and offering them up to $200,000 for health and wellness initiatives for the town.

Any plan for the money does not have to come from the town council, but it has to be approved by the council, Haddad said. It also does not have to be one project, but can be several projects adding up to the $200,000.

There is no deadline requirements, but Haddad said if he hadn’t heard anything from the town by the second half of next year, he’ll give the council a call.

The requirements that are associated with the money includes anything the money is spent on has to coincide with the K21 mission and has to be approved by the town council.

Council President Jill Gross suggested some sort of newsletter to let all the towns know what other towns are thinking of or working on.

• Heard from Town Utilities Supervisor Josh Shepherd that loose-leaf pickup will end today. Any further leaf pickups will have to be in bags.

The council also approved a motion to remind residents not to leave furniture for pickup. Residents have to call Valley Sanitation at 574-893-7070 for an extra fee. Leaving furniture out for regular trash collection without calling the sanitation department will lead to warnings and possibly fines.
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

e-Edition


e-edition

Sign up


for our email newsletters

Weekly Top Stories

Sign up to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday

Daily Updates & Breaking News Alerts

Sign up to get our daily updates and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox daily

Latest Stories


20th Year Of Fat & Skinny Tire Festival Gets Started With Large Community Ride
Before 60 mph winds and a bit of rain paused Friday evening’s Fat & Skinny Tire Festival activities, 650 bicyclists of all ages took part in the community mass ride from The Village at Winona to downtown Warsaw.

Warsaw Takes Down Northridge 8-4 For Share Of NLC
Holding a one-game lead over Northridge for the Northern Lakes Conference crown going into Friday’s matchup, Warsaw had the chance to clinch at least a share of the NLC with a win at home on Senior Night. They were able to do exactly that, using a late offensive attack to win 8-4.

Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Announces Retirement Of Two Educators
AKRON – Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. announced the retirement of two long-serving educators, Layne Early and Lynette Mauger, whose combined 65 years of service have left a lasting impact on generations of students and colleagues, according to a news release from TVSC.

Memorial Day Events On Tap For Holiday
Several towns and organizations have scheduled Memorial Day events.

Board Of Works Reduces Merchant Fee For Goshen Ice Cream Vendor
Warsaw may get another ice cream option if there’s enough interest by the public.